


deanoru week

by downtothewire



Category: Marvel, Runaways (Comics), Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-10
Updated: 2018-06-25
Packaged: 2019-05-19 00:36:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14863307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/downtothewire/pseuds/downtothewire
Summary: My submissions for Deanoru Week hosted by @deanoruweek on Tumblr!A series of one-shots based on prompts. A week worth of new Deanoru stories.





	1. Comic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Karolina is trying to understand the new dynamic in her life since getting the Runaways back together, she decides to go visit Nico at work to catch a glimpse of her in her Hawaiian shirt uniform.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS! I'm so excited to share this, I've been working my butt off to get this completed and I'm going to post a new story everyday this week for the Deanoru Week on Tumblr! So, like check back whenever you want this week as I'll be posting once a day for a week <3
> 
> PS: (spoiler) Julie still hasn't eaten the cupcake in this story, but Nico already has her job. I just felt that that was too complicated of an issue to write about and wanted to write something soft and light given the current heaviness in the comics.

Karolina's personal life was in turmoil. Previous to this entire reunion, she thought her life was on the up for so long that it shook her entire system when the illusion came crashing down. She tried to remind herself of her daily affirmations to keep her centered:

"I am a good person," but she doesn't feel like one right now.

"I am my own person," she doesn't feel like that either.

"My parents decisions don't define me," it felt like they did.

"I forgive myself for the mistakes I made when I was too young to know any better," she can't seem to forgive herself.

"I'm allowed to be happy," Then why couldn't she just be happy?

Karolina had a great girlfriend, she thought. Julie was amazing, she always told herself late at night. Then why couldn't she be happy with her. Was it a lack of shared trauma? Shared interests? Or really was it just a lack of shared love?

Karolina cared about Julie and vice versa, but, right now, caring just didn't seem like enough. Their views were too different on the simplest of subjects. She had a hard time expressing her feelings and she just felt like she wasn't being heard. She knew that wasn't fair, but it was still so frustrating. So, now, she was actively avoiding the one thing that kept her together for so long.

If Karolina was honest with herself there was one nagging problem in the back of her mind that stood out among the rest: Nico. It always seemed to come back to that. She loved her chosen family, but she had always had a hard time admitting to herself she didn't love them the same way she loved Nico. She didn't love her like a sibling like she did the rest, but it didn't matter because Nico didn't feel the same and she made that very clear when Karolina tried.

Or did she? She had only said that she didn't want to jump from relationship to relationship. That she didn't _think_ she was into girls. That she needed to be alone, most of all. Karolina understood, Nico had lost Alex and later on broken up with Victor. Alex had betrayed all of them, but he betrayed Nico the most - and Karolina knew that. Maybe time heals all wounds, who knew?

Ironic of her to think that as she felt like she walked around with a gashing flesh wound that never healed.

Karolina shook her head in an attempt to rid her mind from that one persistent thought. The ridiculous notion that she might stand a chance. Nevertheless, Karolina always came back to her - like a moth to a flame. She came back burning every last piece of her heart. If Karolina thought about it, things had been different lately. Nico had always been more open and touchy with Karolina than the rest, but recently it seemed to have doubled. She held her hand and hooked her arm around hers - and every touch burned her more. Every touch left Karolina feeling guiltier for the way she felt, for avoiding Julie. Every touch made her believe her affirmation of being a good person less and less.

Things had just been so easy with Nico lately. They had been laughing and talking like they hadn't in years since losing contact. It had brought back a multitude of feelings Karolina had buried in the deepest part of her heart - together with Xavin.

She had moved on, she had Julie, she was in college, she was allowed to be happy.  
No matter how many times she told herself that, it never rang true to her.

So, with all this in mind the last place she should be is at this convenience store where Nico works. She convinced herself that this was purely out of friendship. Nico was her best friend after all. When they had been propelled into this world their parents built for them, they had always stuck together and looked out for one another. That sentiment was enough for Karolina to convince herself that the only reason she was here was to make sure that Nico wasn't too miserable at her new job - after all, she did have to wear a hawaiian shirt.

Karolina had looked around the front of the store to find Nico. She wasn't at any of the registers, so, she must be somewhere in the aisles. She finally found her at aisle six stocking sauces onto the shelf. Nico looked a bit annoyed, but otherwise fine, and Karolina thought her grumpy face looked adorable in that hawaiian shirt clashing with her dark makeup. She ignored that thought as she walked towards her friend.

"Hi, Miss. Excuse me. Where can I find the cupcakes? I heard they're pretty good here," Karolina asked in a pleasant voice.

Nico kept her head down as she answered, "Aisle two."

"Thanks, Nico," She replied, making the shorter girl look up. Nico's eyes widened as she saw Karolina standing above her with a pleased smirk on her face.

"Karolina!" She said, slightly louder than necessary. She cleared her throat before bringing her voice down, "What are you doing here?"

"It's nice to see you too. I just thought I'd stop by and see if you were actually in a hawaiian shirt. I had to see it to believe it," Karolina added with a pleased smile spread across her face.

Nico ignored the first sarcastic jab and chose to focus on the latter half of the statement, "You've seen it, you can go now."

"I also wanted to see how you were doing at your new job. If you were, like, miserable or anything."

"Oh!" Nico commented, surprised, "It's okay. Not much to write home about, but I don't hate it. I did have to clean up a broken glass of pickles earlier and got a small cut on my finger, though. I was scared the staff was going to come out. I had to stop myself from ominously chanting 'when blood is shed, let the staff of one emerge' out of habit. Can you imagine if that shit happened on my first day?"

Karolina laughed earnestly for what felt like the first time in forever at Nico's self-deprecating humor, "Sounds horrifying. Seems like after the cards we were dealt, life could've been kinder."

"I've given up on life being kinder. I'm just pleased with where I am," Nico commented as she went back to stocking shelves.

Karolina leaned down and started to help her. She grabbed a few bottles and placed them on the shelf.

"You don't have to," Nico told her in a small voice.

"I don't mind. I don't have much to do. Sometimes the world isn't, but people can be kinder, Nico."

"Thanks," Nico answered at a loss for words, then shooting back before it got awkward with, "But just a word of advice, the label of whatever you're stocking should be out." Nico rotated the bottles Karolina had placed on the shelf so that the brand names were on display.

"Aren't you already the expert?" Karolina teased.

"Just doing my job," she shrugged, and then added in a low tone, "Not something that a crusty hippie would understand."

Karolina laughed again, being able to forget her troubles for just a few minutes, "Nico!" she exclaimed.

Nico looked at her with a pleased smile, shrugged once more, and went back to work.

"I like that you kept the goth makeup. Really fits the entire hawaiian aesthetic," Karolina jabbed back.

"Okay, enough out of you. I need to get back to work, and you need to get back to your rally or whatever it is you people do."

"You people?" Nico nodded. Karolina continued, "Okay then, Morticia. I'll get out of your hair and see you later at the hostel?"

Nico turned to her with a bright smile, "Sounds good. We can watch a movie or something."

Karolina stood and smiled back at her, "Can't wait."

"Nico?" Karolina added before leaving, "I'm glad you're not miserable."

"Thanks, Karrie," she told her in a genuinely touched voice before reverting back to her defensive sarcasm and adding, "There's a first time for everything, I guess." Though the comment wasn't chipper, Nico's mood sure was as she looked at Karolina like she was the reason for her not being miserable.

And then it crept back in, the ever present hope. Her few seconds of bliss eclipsed by guilt. The thought that maybe this time she wasn't imagining things. That Nico cared about her the same way she cared about Nico. Nico had tried to kiss her. But that didn't mean anything, Karolina thought, that was just her way of coping with stress. She can't let herself--

"Karrie, you okay?" Nico asked, concerned.

Karolina realized she had been rooted in her spot for a while. She had to get out of there as fast as she could. She had a girlfriend, and Nico was her best friend. She put on her realest fakest smile she could, "Yeah, was just taking a mental image of you in that shirt so I don't forget."

It might have been her imagination, but she thought she saw Nico blush.

"Okay, now you really have to get out of here."

Karolina chuckled lightly, "Bye, Nico."

"See you later, and don't pick any sappy movies for us to watch!" Nico waved her off.

As Karolina walked out, she did not feel like she was a good person, or her own person, or like her parents decisions did not define her, or that she forgave herself. But with Nico and her family back in her life, for the first time in a long time, she was not sure she was allowed to be, but Karolina felt happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, guys! i'm sorry i have been gone for a couple of weeks, but it's because i was working on this! I hope you guys like it!!
> 
> by the way, my tumblr for anyone that wants to go on it is @downtothe-wire, talk to me there if you want :)


	2. AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After breaking up two years ago, Nico and Karolina never seemed to fully let go of each other. With the influence of alcohol and Karolina moving back to California, they are forced to make a decision on whether they are letting go or sticking together for good.

It had been two years since Karolina and Nico broke-up. Well, technically, as Karolina would tell anyone willing to listen for the first six months, since Nico broke up with her. Six months, that's how long it took Karolina to look at Nico again, let alone talk to her. Nico chose to give Karolina her space until she was ready to talk again.

After those first gut-wrenching six months, where Nico walked the hallways with a heavy guilt in her heart, they were able to start becoming friends again. There wasn't any lack of love or any mistakes that made them to break up. The only reason Nico broke things off was so they could learn to be individuals. They grew up joined at the hip as best friends, and when they finally got together, they kind of meshed into a single person.

When Karolina told Nico that she was going to give up her lifelong dream of studying at Columbia, Nico knew what she had to do. Nico believed Karolina would resent her for the rest of her life if she didn't go. She couldn't stand in the way of her dream. So, she pulled the trigger.

About a year after they broke up, Nico admitted to herself she was wrong. She made a decision for Karolina when it should've been hers to make. She finally understood why Karolina was so mad at her. So, she apologized. During one of the summers Karolina was home, she asked her if they could talk, and Karolina agreed. Though, by the looks of her when she arrived at Timely, she wasn't too happy to be there.

Nico apologized profusely and validated Karolina's feelings to the best of her abilities, but Karolina wasn't ready to give her much back. She understood Karolina might have still been hurt and didn't take it personally, she was glad to slowly clear the air between them. To this day, two years later, there was still some heaviness in the air when they were around each other and Nico couldn't wait for that to be over. Specially since Karolina had recently moved back to California after Columbia didn't turn out to be what she had expected.

Tonight was Gert's birthday and they were going out to celebrate, well, Molly was way too young, but still. They weren't exactly of drinking age either, but they were twenty and that's good enough, no? Gert was turning twenty-one today. It's not their fault Gert only had younger friends. They were all becoming legal in just a few months, anyway.

They stood outside of Gert's house, drunk from their pregame, trying to figure out how they would get to the karaoke place. Nico, apparently the most sober, pulled out her phone and called a Lyft. She interrupted the bickering to tell them.

"I can give everyone a ride," she said showing them the car was a couple of minutes away on her phone screen.

An already very drunk Karolina proclaimed, "You can give everyone a ride, huh?" In a suggestive manner.

The others giggled at Karolina's insinuation, watching Nico to gage her reaction. Karolina looked on at Nico with that infuriating smirk she wore when she made Nico blush. Knowing exactly how to wipe it off, Nico answered: "If anyone would know I don't give just anyone a ride it would be you, Karolina."

The others laughed louder at Nico's comeback. She hoped when she turned around the smirk would be replaced by the scandalized look that Nico loved so much on Karolina's face when she said something inappropriate, but it wasn't. Karolina's smile just grew wider as she kept her eyes on Nico.

"I'll give you that one. That was pretty good," Karolina told her. Nico felt her heart swell with pride, but quickly ignored those feelings as Karolina and her were only friends. She made that pretty clear after Nico apologized.

Their ride arrived and Nico chose to sit in the front seat - she needed a bit of space to think.

The ride was filled with the rest of them screaming lyrics as Chase took over the aux cable and played a suspicious amount of Britney Spears for someone who says their favorite genre of music is rap. Nico was getting suspiciously tipsy as she drank from the 'water bottle' she prepared for herself before leaving the pregame. She sipped it and tried her hardest to keep her eyes trained forward on the road, avoiding Karolina in the rearview mirror. Karolina was on one side of the backseat while Chase was on the other and Gert was sandwiched between them thoroughly annoyed as they sang loudly in each of her ears. Nico couldn't look, her heart was too fond of the blonde, and she had to keep herself under control or she wouldn't be responsible for the decisions she made in her drunken state.

They arrived at the karaoke place and were lead by a cocktail waitress to a private room. The room had a sofa and a television with a couple of microphones on top of a coffee table. The waitress placed the drinks menu on the table and left the room to give them time to choose. They all agreed on a bottle of vodka and, soon, they were ordering a second one and none of them were even remotely close to sober. As Gert and Chase sang a duet of 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart', Karolina scooted closer to Nico on the couch.

"Hi," she said with her intoxicated breath hitting Nico's nostrils.

"Hey, yourself," Nico replied with a small smile.

Karolina laid her head on Nico's shoulder. Nico felt her entire body freeze at the touch. "This is fun," Karolina explained.

"You're just drunk," Nico told her, "Anything would be fun right now."

"True. I'm still having fun, though."

They just watched Gert and Chase lovingly sing to each other for a while before Nico spoke again, "How are you liking being back in California?"

"I'm liking it a lot. I didn't like New York. I missed this. I can't believe you made me go," Karolina teased.

Nico tensed and the heaviness she was so accustomed to between them came back. Of course, it did. She shouldn't have asked. Anytime Nico started to let her guard down, it came back with a vengeance. Karolina must have noticed Nico's colder demeanor.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to say that… I just… I missed you guys is all. I was trying to make a joke!"

"Don't worry about it," Nico answered and nothing more. Gert and Chase had now moved on to their own rendition of 'Endless Love' together. It seemed that they were going through all the duets on the song list.

"Really, Nico. I'm not mad anymore. I promise. I think what you did was brave."

Nico met Karolina's eyes that before were piercing a metaphorical hole through her skull.

"You do?"

Karolina nodded frankly, "I do! Really, Nico, I don't think I would've had the courage to apologize… and you did! It was very… mature of you."

"You didn't have anything to apologize for," Nico told her.

"I did, and we both know I did… I shouldn't have treated you like that after we broke-up," the word still stung Nico, "Iced you out and such. You were doing what you thought was best for me, even if I disagreed," Nico looked at her now and saw the old Karolina she'd been missing for so long. She allowed herself to see her like she hadn't in two years - to remember how much kindness laid behind her eyes. Nico was trying to catch herself before she fell all over again, but it wasn't that easy.

The spell was broken by the sound of the door to their room slamming shut. Gert and Chase had run off to probably do something less than wholesome in the karaoke place's bathroom. Nico cleared her mind before standing up and reaching for the microphone.

"We paid for the two hours, might as well," Nico lamely explained.

Nico got up to the mic and started to sing 'I'm Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman' by Britney Spears, her go to karaoke song. Something that no one except her closest friends would ever know about her.

Karolina snuck up behind her and wrapped her arms around Nico's waist as Nico continued to sing. Nico's voice faltered when Karolina placed a kiss on her neck and whispered, "I specially missed you, Nico," in her ear.

"Kar…" Nico protested, but Karolina just kept kissing her.

"Did you miss me?" Karolina asked, her voice vulnerable.

Nico turned around to properly gaze at her, "Of course I missed you."

Karolina took their proximity as a chance to kiss Nico's lips. She pulled back after the first kiss, but Nico leaned back in to kiss her back. The microphone was quickly abandoned on the floor as Karolina's lips started to feel like home. She took in the familiar softness of her lips, the familiar movements of her tongue, and the familiar minty taste of her mouth that was almost fully eclipsed by the taste of vodka.

Chase and Gert took this moment to return from the bathroom, however, both still fixing their clothes. As they saw their friends quickly pull away from each other, Chase exclaimed, "Fucking knew it! Pay up!"

Gert removed a twenty dollar bill from her wallet and handed it over to Chase before turning to Karolina and Nico, "Couldn't you have waited until after karaoke?"

Nico started to feel her face heat up.

"Sorry, Gert. I just have to..." Karolina excused before she walked out of the room.

Nico stared nervously after her, and then at Gert.

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. Go after her," Gert told her sincerely.

Nico nodded at her, quickly apologizing, before leaving the room after Karolina. She couldn't find her in the lobby, so, she walked downstairs to see Karolina walking away from the karaoke bar in the middle of the street.

"Karolina! Get off the road!" Nico yelled at her.

"There's no one on the road, it's fine," Karolina slurred back.

"Someone could come! Just get on the sidewalk, please!" Nico begged. She was now jogging alongside Karolina on the sidewalk to keep up with her fast pace and long legs.

"You can't tell me what to do anymore, Nico."

"I know, but please just get off the road."

"I don't have to listen to you anymore."

"Why are you acting like this, I'm just trying to be your friend."

"I don't want you to be me my friend! I never did!" Karolina frustratedly yelled back.

That comment deeply hurt Nico. She felt like the world was burning around her.

Nico stopped walking, "Okay, Kar, whatever you want."

When Karolina noticed that Nico wasn't next to her anymore, she stopped to look back, "This is exactly what I mean!"

"What is?" Nico asked confused.

"You never fight for me!"

Now it was Nico's turn to get irritated, "I didn't know you wanted me to fight for you, Karolina! I tried apologizing and you never said anything!"

"You just apologized and left, Nico! You never said you wanted to get back together, you only said you were wrong. That you shouldn't have told me to go, but you never asked me to stay, did you?"

"You didn't look me in the eyes for six fucking months! How was I supposed to know you wanted me to ask you to stay? To fight for us?"

"Because I always did, even if I didn't know. I kissed you first, I asked you to be my girlfriend, I came back from New York, I made the damn move on you tonight! I need something back!"

"So, what you're saying is you want me to fight for you?"

"Yes, what's so hard for you to under--"

Nico cut Karolina off by launching herself at her and kissing her. She poured every inch of her soul into the kiss.

"Then I'll fight for you," Nico told her in a softer voice from the previous one they were using while arguing, "As long as you want me to, Kar, I will always fight for us."

Karolina smiled down at her. Her eyes softening like the years just drifted away from them. Nico dragged her from the street and onto the sidewalk, "I told you to get off the road."

Karolina and Nico both started to laugh.

"What took us so long?" Karolina asked.

"Who knows. We're okay now, though," Nico replied with certainty before doubt crept back in, "Aren't we?"

"We're more than okay," Karolina assured her before leaning down to kiss her again.

"Spend the night with me," Nico told her as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

Karolina nodded.

Once the car Nico requested arrived, they both got into the backseat. Nico rested her head on Karolina's shoulder - feeling utterly blissful.

"Hey, Nico?"

"Hm?"

"This isn't the only ride you're going to give me tonight," Karolina teased.

Nico laughed out loud, which caused the driver to look back at them through the rearview mirror. He looked away when he saw Nico caught him looking.

"How long have you been waiting to make that joke?"

"I was trying to come up with something since the beginning of the night, but I've been waiting to say that since you called the car."

"You pleased with yourself?" Nico asked, teasing her.

"Very," Karolina eagerly replied.

They spent the rest of the ride in a comfortable silence. When they arrived to Nico's apartment they quickly ran upstairs and clothes started to fly. Before anything happened, however, Nico had one more thing to say.

"Kar?"

"Hm?" Karolina responded, dazed, as they pulled away.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

This was her winning the battle, this was Nico fighting for them, like she always would from this day forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


	3. Powers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karolina's lost her suppressor bracelet and can't seem to properly control her powers, especially when her emotions for Nico are in anyway involved.

It all started one day when Karolina was woken up by the sound of everyone around her groaning. She soon noticed the source of the ruckus was due to the entire van being bathed in light.

Karolina was sleeping in the passenger's seat with Alex passed out in the driver's seat next to her. It was their turn to sleep up front. The night had been rough so far as she found it hard to sleep without Nico next to her. Sleeping next to Nico had become one of the few comforts Karolina had taken from being on the road.

"Karolina, turn it off," she heard Molly groan in complaint. She looked down to see her glowing hands and realized she was the source of the light. She became worried though as she realized her bracelet was gone from her wrist.

She concentrated her hardest to dim the lights to a faint glow on her skin - not being able to fully turn them off. She was still learning how to control her own powers. Once her skin wasn't brighter than a night light, she heard the others sigh in relief.

Karolina couldn't fall back asleep. Her panicked brain was currently too busy worrying where her bracelet was. Nico seemed to be sleeping peacefully, though, if the silence around her was any indication. She tried to be quiet as she could while she looked on the floor, the chair, and inside the glove compartment for it.

Apparently, it wasn't good enough, as soon a rough sleep-addled voice spoke close to her ear, "What's wrong?"

Karolina jumped and turned to see Nico behind her rubbing the sleep away from her eyes. Karolina exhaled before whispering, "I can't find my bracelet."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I woke up and it wasn't there."

Nico nodded, a new determination behind her eyes, "Okay, everyone up!" Nico said in a loud voice, "Karolina, can't find her bracelet and we're all going to help her search."

The back of the van groaned and Chase even booed as she pronounced their new late-night task.

"Boo as much as you want, we're still looking for it."

Nico shooed all of them away from inside the van, so, she could properly look in the back. She searched through all the blankets with Gert. Meanwhile, Karolina and Molly looked up front, and Alex and Chase were looking around the perimeter with flashlights.

"Why do we have to search? She's your girlfriend," Gert moaned.

"This will go faster. If you want to go back to sleep, keep looking," she replied with an edge to her voice that clearly stated she didn't want to hear any complaints. Gert chose wisely to stop talking - Nico seemed to be the only one out of all of them who could make her do that.

Karolina had to remind herself what their goal was at that moment, because she was having a hard time concentrating on anything other than the fact that Nico didn't outright deny that she was her girlfriend. They still hadn't discussed what they were to each other and she was clinging on to any bit of hope she could find. The stolen kisses, the cuddling, and the caring gestures like waking up a van of four other sleepless teenagers and a dinosaur to help you find your bracelet.

Well, Old Lace hadn't exactly woken up. She just moved from the van to sleep outside.

Karolina still didn't know what they were, and if she was honest with herself, it bothered her a bit. Her skin started to glow as she thought of her relationship with Nico. She then realized her emotions were clearly triggering her control over her powers. She chose to narrow her focus and keep searching.

Another half an hour passed, and Chase and Alex had come back with no result. Karolina got antsy as she was losing hope. Nico must have noticed, because she placed her hand on top of Karolina's before asking, "You okay?"

Karolina shook her head.

"Maybe we should just give up for tonight and look for it tomorrow in the daylight," Alex tried, sheepishly.

"Keep looking," Nico bit back at him.

Chase booed again, and Nico punched him in the arm. Molly was sitting in the corner of the van with her eyes fluttering shut as the others continued to search. Nico stepped out and pulled Karolina from the passenger's seat. She walked them a couple feet away, behind some trees.

"Don't worry, Kar, we'll find it. It has to be here somewhere," she said softly her thumb soothingly rubbing Karolina's cheek. Everywhere Nico stroked Karolina's skin would light up.

"I know, I'm sorry I'm reacting like this," Karolina said, looking at her feet.

"What's going on?"

"I can't sleep without you by my side," Karolina mumbled unintelligibly.

"What?"

"I can't sleep without you by my side," Karolina admitted louder. Her skin was already starting to turn color as her emotions were pouring out.

Nico coaxed her to look at her by tugging on her hand - it started to glow.

"Me too, you know?"

"You seemed pretty asleep to me," Karolina retorted with more bite than she expected.

"Okay, so this is what it's really about," Karolina hadn't realized herself that it was until her mouth chose to say it for her. Nico's eyes filled with hurt, and she dropped her hand. The lights on it shut off. Karolina's heart dropped to her stomach. "I wasn't sleeping, by the way. I was trying to, but couldn't, because you weren't there. Maybe I can now," Nico retorted back at her with the voice she usually reserved for when she was pissed at someone else, it was never directed at her.

"Do you think I don't care about you, Karolina?" Nico said, her voice now small.

Nico's clear intent to hurt her was enough to shame Karolina, but her fragile voice showing her own vulnerability broke Karolina's heart. She immediately wanted to take what she said back, but couldn't. It was out there, and she had to fix this somehow.

"I'm sorry, I know you care about me. I'm just scared, really."

"About what?" Nico shot back, still not impressed.

A beat passed between the both of them before Karolina found the courage to speak.

"Getting my heart broken," Karolina admitted, because she felt that if she wasn't honest it would end up happening anyway, "I like you, Nico, and I just want to be sure you like me the same way."

Nico seemed to think for a moment before making a decision. She spun Karolina and pressed her against a tree. She placed both hands on Karolina's hips and leaned in to kiss her. Karolina had to lean down and meet her half way. When their lips met, Karolina never felt so much certainty in a kiss from the shorter girl before.

Nico kissed her like she really meant it - far from the timid kisses they had shared before this. Nico's hands went under her shirt and splayed themselves over her ribs. She started to massage Karolina's abs as she moved to deepen the kiss. This was the first time Karolina had felt the texture of Nico's tongue and she quickly became addicted. Karolina grabbed the girl's neck and pulled her as close as she could, eliminating any further space between them. The dominant action made Nico moan into her mouth and at this point Karolina was gone, she was committed to this kiss and never breaking it, she decided.

It was interrupted, however, when they heard Gert yell, "Are you trying to give away our location?"

"Fuck off!" Nico yelled back after pulling away. Karolina's eyes finally fluttered open to see Nico in front of her looking properly kissed - lips swollen and lipstick smeared. Her heart hammered in her chest as she saw Nico's chest heaving. She had left Nico breathless. A proud smirk plastered itself on Karolina's face.

"Wipe that smirk off your face and concentrate on controlling your powers for a second, Kar!" Nico scolded her, but this time with no malice.

Karolina then noticed that she was glowing brighter than she ever had before. Seemed like she really had no control over her powers with Nico around. Fuck.

"Okay, I need you to move back then," Karolina said with her eyes closed in concentration. She felt Nico's hands leave the inside of her shirt, and heard her take three steps back as leaves crunched beneath her feet. Karolina counted down from twenty, and when she opened her eyes she saw Nico looking back at her. Her lights diminished again to a faint glow, but Nico's gaze was back to being annoyed. Karolina felt nervous all over again. What did she do now?

"Do you still think I don't like you?" Nico asked pointedly.

Karolina shook her head.

"Never, and I repeat never, Karolina, doubt that I like you again, okay?" Nico said, her tone mismatching her vulnerable words.

Karolina's nervous energy died down, and she was able to nod back at Nico.

"Good, cause I like you a lot," Nico concluded. She leaned in and quickly pecked Karolina's lips. When Nico pulled away, Karolina felt that knowing Nico liked her a lot was enough for now. Maybe, they were on the same page.

"Come on. Control your glow, and let's go find your bracelet. I have an idea," Nico stated. She stretched out her hand for Karolina to take. Karolina gladly did, and the faint hue came back to her palm.

They walked back to the van and Nico reached in the back to find her staff.

"Finally," Chase grumbled, which earned him his third dirty look of the night courtesy of Nico.

She winced slightly as the staff pierced her finger and called out, "Locate suppressor bracelet."

The circle at the top of her staff lit up and at the same time a circle formed at the bottom of the passenger seat.

"How did it get there?" Karolina asked.

"And how are we going to get it out of there?" Alex added.

Molly then showed up with her pupils shining yellow and just ripped the seat from its place - leaving the bracelet visible. She threw the seat to the side like it was nothing. Karolina grabbed the bracelet and snapped it on her wrist. The faint glow on her skin died down.

"Can I go to sleep now?" Molly was annoyed as she looked at Nico.

Nico nodded, and Karolina thought that maybe she saw a slight amount of fear in Nico's eyes. Who would've thought the one thing that scared Nico Minoru was a moody fourteen year old girl. Molly stomped her way to the van and fell asleep seconds later.

"How are we gonna fix that?" Gert questioned.

"We'll figure that out tomorrow. I'm too tired right now," Chase answered. Both of them climbed into the van. Alex had already retreated away from them to take his place in the driver's seat. With Old Lace still sleeping outside, there was more than enough room for Karolina to sleep in the back.

"I guess you're sleeping next to me after all," Nico cheeked at her.

"Yeah," Karolina said brightly.

They clambered into the van together. Nico pushed people around a bit to open up enough space for her and Karolina to sleep next to each other. No one dared to groan at her, and Nico didn't dare to try and move Molly. Once they were laying down, Nico promptly wrapped her arms around Karolina's waist - leaving no room for doubt. She tugged the taller girl closer until they had formed their own cocoon. Nico sighed contently.

Karolina, on the other hand, had one more thing she had to say before they could drift into sleep, "You know you could've quickly fixed the seat with the staff, right?"

She felt Nico's shoulders shrug along her back, her voice already sleepy, "Didn't wanna take any chance of you not sleeping here."

Karolina intertwined their hands together at her stomach, "Good thing, I'm wearing my bracelet right now."

Nico leaned in and placed a small kiss on the back of her neck. "Shh, sleep," Nico mumbled.

Good thing indeed, or Karolina would be lighting up like a Christmas tree, waking up her friends once more. She burrowed closer to Nico for warmth and the other girl tightened her grip on her waist. They drifted into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


	4. Crossover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Runaways are trying to stop a robbery, key word trying, when in swings Spider-Man to help them. With Nico and Karolina currently fighting, Spider-Man finds a way to help the Runaways twice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I've never done a crossover story before. I'm not sure if Spider-Man counts as a crossover, because they are in the same universe and he has appeared in the Runaways comics. So, just imagine this is a MCU crossover I guess haha

The Runaways van was parked outside of a convenience store in Queens, New York. Their adventures had lead them there in a last ditch effort to beg the Avengers for help. Early in the morning, Nico was startled awake by the sound of loud crashing outside the van. She looked around her and her heart raced when she couldn't find Karolina.

"Guys, wake up!" Nico screamed in panic. As everyone started to wake up nonchalantly, it only worsened, "There was a crash outside and Karolina's gone! I can't find Karolina!"

She felt Gert's arms go around her, "Nico, breathe. Let's go see what caused the crash."

Nico picked up her staff and Chase put on his fistigons. They were ready for whatever was outside and for whatever state they found Karolina in. Nico swallowed hard, it felt like her throat was closing up and she needed to know if it still worked. He opened up the back of the van and they all filed out in a hurry to find a passed out man who had crashed through the convenience store window. Inside, a glowing rainbow alien was fighting off a mugger.

"Karolina!" Nico exclaimed after her.

Karolina turned to look at her, "Nico?"

The mugger turned to point his gun at Karolina. Nico instinctively lifted her staff feeling the quick pierce on her finger and yelled, "Stop bullet!"

The man's gun cocked back so violently it sent him flying towards a shelf of bottles that knocked him out once they fell one by one on his head.

Nico ran into the store and cupped Karolina's face, "Are you okay?"

Karolina nodded in response.

This answer seemed to satisfy Nico, because she pushed Karolina back and started yelling, "How dare you just leave the van?"

"I heard a noise and came to check it out," Karolina answered in a stutter, surprised Nico was yelling at her.

"You should've called us! You could've gotten hurt!"

"I was doing fine myself," she answered in a tone similar to a petulant child getting scolded.

"Like hell, you were! When I came in here you almost got shot!"

"Because you distracted me!"

While they were arguing, another mugger stood up from behind the counter and pointed his gun at both Nico and Karolina.

"Look out!" Molly yelled.

They turned to look at the mugger. Nico froze on the spot. Karolina moved to shield Nico's body with her own. Before the man could take a shot, however, a web tangled itself around his gun. Then flung it away to the other side of the store.

Nico pushed her away from her again.

"Stop pushing me!" Karolina told her, annoyed.

"Were you really going to sacrifice yourself again? God damn it, Karolina! Stop doing that!"

"I was just trying to protect you!"

"I can protect myself!"

They continued to argue as the source of the web, Spider-Man, took care of the last mugger. He webbed his head and smashed it against the counter before rounding up all three muggers and wrapping them together.

Spider-Man then walked towards a still arguing Nico and Karolina, "Excuse me?" He said.

"Excuse me?" He tried again, louder this time.

"Excuse me!" He shouted. Nico and Karolina stopped arguing to look at him.

"You're-you're--" Nico stuttered.

"Spider-Man!" Molly had run into the store and was already hugging him around the waist.

"Hi, yes… I'm Pe--Spider-Man. Who are you people?"

Molly let go of him and puffed out her chest proudly to say, "We're the Runaways!"

"We don't call ourselves that," Gert interrupted as her, Chase, and Alex walked into the store.

"The Runaways? I've never heard of you."

"That's because we don't really want to be heard of," Alex told him, "Mr. Spider-Man, you're an avenger, I think you could help us."

"Not Karolina, she doesn't need any help," Nico interrupted under her breath.

"Could we talk about this later?"

"No."

"Nico, now's not the time."

"Then when is, Karolina?"

Spider-Man turned to the others and asked, "What's wrong with them?"

Chase shrugged, "They do this sometimes."

"It's healthy really, any relationship has their arguments," Gert analyzed. They were all staring at Karolina and Nico arguing as if they were a research experiment or a zoo exhibit.

"Would someone mind pushing them together really quick?" Spider-Man asked.

Molly's eyes shined yellow.

"Mutant? Cool!" Spider-Man exclaimed as Molly ran to tackle them both. She pushed harder than necessary and Nico fell on top of Karolina.

"Um, ow!" Nico complained.

Spider-Man shot his web at both of them, binding them together. Nico and Karolina tried to pull apart, but couldn't. They avoided each other's gaze while trying very hard not to blush at their bodies being pressed up against each other.

"Can you release us, please? We won't fight anymore," Karolina promised in her sweetest church voice.

"Nah, I think I'll keep you stuck until you can work this out," Spider-Man told them before turning to the others, "So, how can I help?"

"Well, you see, we ran away from home because--" Alex started.

"Our parents are super-villains and we need help defeating them!" Molly finished.

"Molly, you can't just open with--" Alex said before Spider-Man interrupted with, "Oh, yeah, of course we can help. That's what we do!"

"Shouldn't you check us to make sure we're not evil?" Gert asked skeptically.

"Nah, you're fine. You were stopping bad guys, so, you can't be all bad. Plus you're just kids," Spider-Man waved her off, "I'll take you to them, just follow me."

"Oh, okay," Gert said lamely.

Molly walked over to Nico and Karolina, and carried both of them in her arms. They followed Spider-Man out of the convenience store.

"This isn't embarrassing at all," Nico grumbled.

Molly threw them in the back of the van. The rest scrambled in after. They drove behind Spider-Man as he swung ahead of them.

The entire trip to the Avengers Headquarters was quiet. Karolina and Nico, even stuck together, refused to talk to each other - no matter how much the others tried to coax them to do it. Once they arrived, everyone started to file out of the van. Karolina and Nico were left for last as they had quite a bit of struggling to do in order to exit. When they started to shuffle to leave, however, Gert closed the back door to the van and locked the van with the key.

"Call me when you guys have talked this out!" Gert yelled, sounding a lot like a parent who was over their small children fighting.

"Did you just lock them in there?" Nico heard Spider-Man ask.

"It's for their own good," She heard Gert reply.

"I like your style," Spider-man told her.

The voices of the rest of the group became distant and muffled as they walked away. Great, they really were stuck here, Nico thought.

"Damn this old van and its eighties technology. What kind of vehicle is still locked by a single key?" She complained.

She heard Karolina sigh, they were still not looking at each other, "Look, we're stuck in here until we talk about this, so, we might as well--"

"Oh! Now you want to talk!" Nico interrupted.

"Yes, Nico. Now. At the _appropriate_ time."

Nico knew she was being childish, but she couldn't help herself, "Maybe I don't wanna talk anymore."

"Nico, don't be a baby. Talk to me," Karolina tried, but Nico didn't answer. She just kept to herself, her gaze still avoiding Karolina's.

Karolina grew increasingly frustrated, "Why are you being this damn difficult? I heard a noise, and I went to see what it was and I handled the situation. I'm sorry if you don't like the fact that we're now on the run and some fucked up things happen while you are."

Nico still chose to stay mute.

"Could you talk to me? You're being so childish right now! I don't understand--"

"Yeah, you don't fucking understand!" Nico finally broke.

"Then help me understand," Karolina replied with an edge to her voice.

Nico considered her options before she decided to let it all out. She had been holding it in long enough, "You don't understand what it feels like to wake up and not have you next to me! To panic when you're not there and think it's because _they_ took you! To walk outside and see a man pointing a gun at you! To think you're about to die, because you constantly keep putting your life on the line like it doesn't fucking matter! Maybe you don't care about yourself, Karolina, but I do!"

Nico saw Karolina was crying, and she soon realized she was too when she felt a tear reach her lip. Nico automatically felt guilty for blowing up.

"I'm sorry, Kar. I shouldn't have yelled. But I'm just so tired of this hero complex bullshit. It's selfish, really. Do you really think I want to be safe if it means you're not? You get to go, and I get left behind with so much pain. I'm so scared one day I'm going to wake up and you're actually not there anymore."

"I'll always be there," Karolina comforted. Karolina knew her enough to understand that this fear came from losing someone close, her sister.  She knew that Nico's biggest fear was being left behind, not dying. Nico knew she knew this, so, an all-encompassing shyness came over her.

"You don't know that," Nico said with her head hung low.

"I do know that. I'll always come back for you, Nico."

"It's still so scary when you're gone, Kar. I know you care and you're always just trying to do the right thing, but it isn't the right thing for me. I wanna be there with you, fighting next to you. I don't want you to sacrifice yourself for me. I want you to believe that your life matters as much as the rest of ours."

"I can promise I'll make sure you're next to me, but I can't promise I'll think my life matters more to me than yours. I care about you too much. I couldn't stop myself from throwing myself in front of you if something happens."

Nico exhaled a lengthy tired breath, and finally looked up at Karolina.

"I understand that," Nico compromised, "But I need you to know that if something did happen to you, I would be willing to do the same thing, and I need you to give me the option to make that decision too. To be beside you no matter what. We're a team, Kar."

Karolina thought for a moment before conceding, "Okay, I will."

"You will?"

"I will."

"Good, now, kiss me."

Karolina turned to kiss her. Them being stuck together didn't do wonders when they were fighting, but it sure did when they were making up.

Things were starting to get slightly out of control, so, Karolina pulled away. "I think if we call them now, he'll release us," Karolina said, her eyes glazed over, her words only half-meant.

"Hmm, maybe we should just stay stuck for a bit longer," Nico retorted, her eyes still focused on Karolina's lips.

"Sounds like a plan," Karolina finished before Nico resumed kissing her. If there was anyone in the world Nico wouldn't mind being stuck to for a bit longer, it would be Karolina.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


	5. Memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's 3 in the morning, and Karolina is trying to think back to try and figure out when she first became attracted to Nico.

Karolina could pinpoint the exact moment she understood she liked Nico. It was in that parking lot when she was her most vulnerable, Nico hugged her, and right then and there everything aligned. Before that it was only a sneaking suspicion that there was something more, but the comfort she felt in Nico's arms confirmed that there was.

She couldn't, however, pinpoint the exact moment she started feeling attracted to Nico. Her attraction to girls began with Nico. It didn't end with Nico, but it definitely stayed with her when others came along. She could remember finding something different about Nico ever since they were kids, something beyond pretty. She didn't notice Nico's beauty out of jealousy, she noticed it just because. It was something she couldn't quite put into words at the time, and sometimes she still can't.

She remembers the first time she felt different from everyone else. She was six and her parents had been preparing to renew their vows. Their first wedding had been small, so, they wanted to do it again with all of their closest five hundred friends. Karolina had been enamored by the flowers and the dresses and the decorations. It all just made her dream of her own wedding.

Her mom had been brushing her hair while Karolina gushed about what her wedding would be like the night before. She imagined it like something out of a Disney princess movie - castles and fairies. Her mom had been attentively listening when she asked her, "Who would you marry in the scenario?"

Karolina had to think for a moment before an answer popped up in her head, "I think Nico."

Her mother didn't react harshly or scold her, all she calmly said was, "You're supposed to marry someone you love, honey, not someone who's just a friend."

At that point, Karolina became uncharacteristically quiet. She processed her mother's words in her head, but she couldn't make sense of them. Why couldn't she marry Nico?

The next day at the wedding they were all running around playing but Karolina, who stayed seated, thinking. Nico ran up to her, "Aren't you gonna come play?" She asked. Her cheeks flushed and her hair messy from all the running around she had been doing.

"I don't want to."

"Why not?"

"I'm too sad to play," Karolina confessed.

Nico took a seat next to her, "Why are you sad?"

Karolina blushed. She vividly remembers this as the first time she felt flustered. She looked at her shoes, clicking the short heels together, as she mumbled, "My mom says I can't marry you."

"Why not?" Nico automatically asked.

"Because we're not supposed to marry friends."

"Why not?"

"I don't know."

"I'll marry you if you want me to," Nico told her.

Karolina stopped nervously fidgeting her feet and looked up - this was the first time Nico made her heart race, "Really?"

"Yeah, you're nice. Plus you have a pool with a slide."

"Okay," Karolina answered - her eyes as wide as saucers, her chest uncomfortable.

"Now that we're married, let's go play?"

Karolina nodded and followed Nico to the yard to run after the other kids in a game of catch.

That memory had always brought a smile to Karolina's face. She didn't quite understand why she wanted to marry Nico then, but she did now.

She sat on the edge of their bed, and thought about everything that they had been through together. Running away, getting together, breaking up, defeating their parents, vampires, cyborgs, super villains, superheroes, mortgages, and taxes. They had a rough go of it, but they were better people for it. After their last falling out, they took time to grow as people and were now going on a five year relationship. 27 and still alive, something she never thought either of them would get, let alone both and together.

It was 3 AM, and Karolina couldn't sleep. She kept going back to her relationship and thinking of how much it had survived. How much they were able to endure and still choose each other.

She was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of Nico sitting up, yawning, and lightly placing a hand on her arm.

"You seem a million miles away. Why're you up?" Nico asked, her voice still muddled with sleep.

"Couldn't shut off my brain," Karolina told her.

Nico scooted down the bed and leaned against Karolina's back - placing a soft kiss on her shoulder, "What're you thinking 'bout?"

Karolina could feel Nico's eyelashes fluttering shut against her back.

"Do you remember when we were like six or seven and my parents renewed their vows?"

She felt Nico softly nod her head against her back.

"I'm thinking about that."

"Why are you thinking about that?" Nico's voice was a little more awake now. Karolina felt Nico wrap her arms around her middle.

"I was thinking about us and when I started, like, noticing you. That's when I started liking you, I think. I didn't realize I liked you until much much later. But I can't think of when I started thinking you were pretty."

"You've always thought I was pretty, that's why you can't," Nico joked.

Even though her tired tone didn't give it away, Karolina knew Nico enough at this point to understand her humor. She chuckled lightly before asking, "Remember what I asked you that day?"

"Why you couldn't marry me."

"And what did you tell me?"

"That I'd marry you.

"Mhm. Would you still do it? We never did get divorced. Maybe it would be like a vow renewal like it was for my parents." It still surprised Karolina when she could talk about her parents casually.

"Do you still have a pool with a slide?" Nico cheeked.

Karolina laughed before answering, "No. Sorry."

"Eh," Nico shrugged softly, her jaw popping as she yawned, "I'll manage."

Nico pulled away slowly from her back and Karolina already missed the warmth. Nico tugged on her arm, and pulled her gently across the bed to lay down, "Now, stop thinking and come back to bed."

Karolina let herself be softly dragged into spooning Nico. She thought Nico had already drifted into sleep, but then she heard her voice heavy with sleep, "Karolina?"

"Hm?"

"Ask me to marry you again in the morning."

Karolina's heart started to race, "Okay. I will."

"Good," Nico finished before drifting off. Karolina laid cuddling her for a while longer before she could let herself go. Her nerves were making her hyper aware of everything around her - specially the feel of Nico's body against her own. She forced herself to sleep at some point only to see if the morning would come faster. They had done enough waiting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this might be one of my faves, it's just soft. I love soft girlfriends. Plus I felt like the previous three chapters had a bit of angst to them, so here's just good wholesome soft content haha. Anyway, thanks for reading!!


	6. Touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While on a trip to pick up supplies, Nico and Karolina find themselves in the presence of a police officer. Hiding in the bathroom to keep safe, the only thing that grounds both of them is each other's touch.

Nico and Karolina were in charge of getting the supplies for the week. Karolina currently sported dark brown hair and Nico had gotten hers highlighted. Both were using outfits they wouldn't usually be caught dead in. They guessed that was the point of a disguise, not looking like yourself.

It was all going fine, Nico had a cart with almost all the supplies they needed while Karolina searched for the last couple of things on the list. The atmosphere was calm. The only other person in the store was the cashier who seemed too engrossed in her phone to even notice they were there in the first place. She had her white converse high tops up on the counter as she paid them no attention.

Karolina was looking for toilet paper when she saw a police car pull up to the store. Her survival instinct kicked in. She abandoned her efforts, and took Nico by the hand. She dragged her into a bathroom stall, sat on the closed toilet seat, and tried not to think about the probable years in which it hadn't been cleaned. She pulled Nico onto her lap, and propped her long legs against the stall door.

"Wow!" Nico told her in a teasing tone, "As much fun as this is, Karolina, I don't really think now's the time?"

"Shh!" Karolina hushed her, "There's police outside. Just keep quiet."

Nico had her back to Karolina, so, she couldn't see the panic start to settle in Nico's eyes. She only noticed her anxiety when she heard Nico start to sniffle. This surprised Karolina a bit as out of all of them, Nico was the one yet to cry.

Karolina was scared for her life at the moment, but as soon as she heard Nico crying, she forgot it all. Something stronger in her woke up. This moment became about making sure Nico was okay.

She turned Nico's head towards her, her cheap makeup they bought on the road slightly running. Karolina pressed a light ghost of a kiss to Nico's cheek. Nico shut her eyes in some momentary relief and leaned her head against Karolina's shoulder. Karolina wrapped both her arms securely against Nico's middle.

The door to the bathroom opened and police boots, visible under the stall doors, walked towards the stall on the other end. Karolina could feel Nico shaking, so, she tightened her grip on the girl's middle. Nico grabbed her arm and squeezed tightly. Karolina's touch was the only thing keeping her grounded. The woman finished and walked towards the sink to wash her hand. The tension in both Nico and Karolina was palpable as the water ran.

So focused on keeping Nico calm, Karolina forgot to balance her feet on the stall door and they slipped causing a loud squeak. She saw the police woman's feet turning away from the sink and towards their stall.

"Everything alright in there?" She asked in a suspicious voice.

Karolina brought her hand up to cover Nico's mouth. She had to think quick.

"Everything's okay," she settled on, "Just a rough time in here."

She hated what she had just insinuated to a cop. She knew that her excuse was flimsy. That if the cop did the bare amount of investigation she would see the abandoned cart in the store and the lack of a vehicle outside - both suspicious for someone in a far and largely abandoned rest stop. Most of all, she just had to look over the stall to see Nico sitting on Karolina's lap, her hand over her mouth, the panic in both their eyes - all in all a very compromising position.

"Are you su--" The police woman was about to continue pressing when her radio came to life.

The brief static was followed by, "We have a 10-80 in progress on the interstate, all units please report for duty."

"This is Officer Malone," They heard the woman reply, "I'm on my way."

The rushed footsteps of her boots running out of the restroom were heard and seen as she exited. Soon, sirens started blaring outside of the window. They held their breaths while they waited for it to become deathly silent. They both exhaled simultaneously.

Karolina let her feet fall to the ground and Nico turned on her lap. Her eyes were wide. Karolina could tell how scared she actually was, and it broke her heart. She never hated being on the run more than she did now.

She brought her hand up to Nico's cheek and carefully stroked it with her thumb - hoping it would offer the other girl some kind of comfort. A couple of tears rolled down Nico's eyes as she leaned against Karolina's palm.

"It's okay, love. We're okay now," Karolina told her in the softest voice she could find inside her - trying to repress her own fear. She didn't know if she believed what she was saying, but Nico needed her to pretend for now.

"Okay?" She pushed when Nico didn't say anything. Nico nodded softly against her hand before opening her eyes. Something shifted in them after a moment of looking into Karolina's own worried ones. Her pupils seemed to darken as she attacked Karolina's mouth. Karolina wasn't sure they should be doing this right now, but they were almost caught, and they deserved a moment of escapism in anyway they could get it.

Nico kissed Karolina with every last inch of herself. With bated breath, Karolina pulled away to tell her, "I love you, you know that right?"

Nico kept looking at her mouth as she nodded, "Me too," she said before leaning in again. She moved from her mouth to Karolina's ear, nipping it slightly before telling whispering, "I need to feel you."

Karolina shivered. Her body coursed with desire for every one of Nico's touches. Karolina reached for the bottom of her top and removed it, discarding it somewhere on the ground. Nico removed her own then inched closer to her on her lap until their torsos were touching. They had never gone this far and they were about to in a gas station rest stop bathroom. Maybe this wasn't the best idea, Karolina thought, but as her touch kept Nico grounded before, Nico's touch was helping her lose much needed control right now. So, she ignored that instinct again.

She splayed her hands on top of Nico's thighs and moved them higher until they were somewhere beneath her skirt. This seemed to light a fire in Nico as she reached behind Karolina's back and easily undid her bra strap. Fuck, that was hot. There really were some great advantages to being with a girl.

Nico moved her torso away from Karolina's. Karolina let her bra slip from its place, revealing her breasts.

"You're gorgeous," Nico told her, and Karolina felt her body heat up.

As Nico reached to touch them, they heard the door open up once more. Nico leaned her body against Karolina's to cover her and propped her feet up against the bathroom wall. The quick thinking proving she was still on edge.

There weren't any pair of boots underneath the stalls this time, only white converse high tops.

They heard the cashier from before say in an awkward voice with a southern accent, "Hey, guys… um… I'm all for this and whatever, like I know you're both on some romantic road trip or something, but like would you mind having sex somewhere else? I already almost got fired for someone doing that here this month."

A sense of relief seemed to flood both girls - they were still okay.

"Um, yeah," Karolina told her, "Sorry. We'll be out in a minute."

"Okay, cool. Sorry about that. I'll start ringing up some of your stuff," She finished and walked out of the bathroom. Karolina stopped and thought if maybe they were in the stall it happened that month. She shivered at the thought of the several germs that were probably around her. She was glad, for the first time, that they were interrupted. There was a better place for this.

Then she turned to Nico who was watching her with a smirk and they started laughing. The laughter came from a place of joy, panic, fear and, mostly, relief. It still felt good to laugh. With the moment broken, Karolina and Nico dressed themselves.

"I'm gonna miss those," Nico joked as she put on her shirt and Karolina put on her bra.

"Funny," Karolina told her as her face turned red hot.

They finished getting dressed, but before Nico left, Karolina gently held her arm, stopping her. "You can see them later if you want," Karolina's tone was shy even if her statement was bold.

"Oh!" Nico reacted in surprise. It was her turn to blush as she stuttered, "Okay, yeah. Cool. Later."

They both left the bathroom and bought their supplies. They walked back barely speaking to each other - both still on edge. They excused themselves once they got to the motel they were staying at. They needed a bit more escapism before they were ready to come back to reality and they found it in each other's touch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


	7. Home/Found Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico remembers the amazing birthday parties Karolina had growing up. So, with Karolina's birthday coming up, Nico is determined to make her feel just as special as she did when they weren't on the run.

Nico remembers Karolina's birthday parties growing up. Leslie and Frank would go all out and spare no expense on the extravagant event. Karolina was treated like a princess, and many times, when they were younger, she literally dressed as one.

A part of Nico as a kid had been jealous. Her birthday parties were almost clinical, she felt. Her parents would put together a good birthday party and usually stick to whatever theme Nico chose that year, but they were never like Karolina's. There were no giant inflatable slides or buffets or even, one time, the woman who played Belle in Beauty and the Beast actually singing. There were advantages to your father - well, adoptive father, she guesses - being a movie star.

Nico remembers seeing the smile that would be plastered across Karolina's face as she ran from activity to activity every year. As she got older the parties became more personal. Karolina never being the most popular person in school had her parties with the kids from Gibborim and the Pride Kids as the only attendees. This, however, didn't stop the celebrations from being special. There could've no longer been ponies or Paige O'Hara, but there was every bit of thought still put into it. Her parents got her her favorite cake, every present she asked for, and showered her with love.

Last night, Karolina had confided in Nico while they laid wrapped up in each other in the back of a van that spending her birthday with her parents is something she is going to selfishly miss. She'll miss how much of a family they felt like every year on that day. How all the attention her parents usually granted to either the church or auditions were transferred onto her - and she got to be the thing they cared about most for a day. It was the closest she ever came to her white picket fence like dream for a family that the rest of the world seemed to believe they were.

So, when it came time for Karolina's birthday, Nico wanted to do something special. The only problem was they were currently fugitives from the law on a very tight budget, which usually does not make for a great birthday party. To make matters even worse on Nico, they were currently camping, so, the party would have to be inside of a van - the usual setting for a rager, she thought sarcastically. Nico still tried her best. She sent Chase to distract Karolina for a couple of hours while the rest of them got to work - purposefully not wishing her a happy birthday.

Molly made a poster with every last bit of the glitter glue she could squeeze out that read: 'Happy Birthday!' (They decided to keep Karolina's name off it, in case they decided to reuse it for someone else's birthday in the future). Alex and Gert blew up some dollar store balloons to spread inside of the van. Nico had walked a mile to the nearest convenience store to get Karolina a cake. She walked back to camp, chocolate cake in hand, and a private birthday card for later on in the night in her bag. Nico and the other three hid inside the van, and waited for Karolina and Chase to come back.

When they finally heard their voices, Karolina did not sound happy.

"Karolina, wait!" They heard Chase call out.

"No, you know what? This day was crappy enough to begin with. Please, just leave me alone, so, I can grab my clothes from the van and go down to the creek and wash off."

At Karolina's irritated tone, Nico and the others started to panic. She was coming towards the van very displeased and they were all now wondering if this was all a huge mistake.

"Where are the others, anyway--"

Karolina opened the van door to find Molly, Nico, Gert, and Alex sitting in the van all wearing rainbow party hats, while Nico held a cake in hand. Karolina was covered in dried mud from head to toe.

"What did you do to her?" Nico asked Chase scandalized, already planning how she would make him pay.

Chase stuttered behind Karolina trying to explain himself as Nico kept her eyes focused on him with a death glare. Gert placed a calming hand on Nico's shoulder, "Happy birthday!" She said excitedly. Nico, Alex, and Molly followed suit. Nico was embarrassed that she didn't have the instinct before Gert.

At the mention of her birthday, however, Karolina instantly broke out into tears.

Nico started to panic, thinking she had understood their conversation last night completely wrong. She thought that Karolina probably just wanted the day to go by unnoticed, it's what Nico would've wanted for herself anyway. How could she not have considered the possibility that this would bring up bad memories for Karolina and make her cry? Nico hated to see her cry.

She placed the cake down, walked towards the crying girl and mumbled, "I'm sorry, Kar… I thought after last night you wanted..." She never finished her thought and just drifted off into her own self loathing.

Karolina removed the hands that were on her face to look at Nico, "Sorry?" She asked in a quiet voice, "Why are you sorry?"

"I made you cry. I'm sorry for not thinking that you didn't want this."

"I'm not crying, because of that," Karolina explained.

"You're not?"

"No, I'm crying, because I'm happy. I thought you guys forgot."

"We didn't! Nico didn't let me say anything in the morning, because she wanted it to be a surprise!" Molly intervened.

Karolina offered the girl a radiant smile, the one that was reserved for her birthdays, the one that made Nico's heart melt. "It's okay, Molly. This is a lot more special. I love surprises."

She looked back at Nico with the same smile, and Nico almost told her what was written on the card right then and there.

A chorus of happy birthday interrupted that urge as Chase walked with the now lit candles towards Karolina. The others approached her and she blew out the candles.

"Thank you, guys. I love you," she said with tears in her eyes. She exhaled heavily and wiped them off, "Okay, I'm going to go change out of these dirty clothes and wash my hair really quick. When I get back we can cut the cake and listen to some music on the radio."

When Karolina left to clean herself, Alex turned to Chase, "How did she get dirty, anyway?"

Chase cleared his throat loudly, trying to stall as he explained, "She was tired of me stalling her and just wanted to go home, so, I panicked and pushed her in the mud."

"You did what?!" Nico screamed at him.

"Nico's going to kill you," Gert explained in a monotone voice.

"Hey! I bought us an extra half an hour, because of that!" He tried to justify.

"Next time we're on the road, I'll push you in the mud and we'll have an extra half an hour of peace before you catch up to us," Nico said, still not satisfied.

Molly's eyes turned yellow as she used her powers to hold back Nico from attacking Chase.

"Wow there, Rocky. Calm down," Gert told her. Alex was watching from the sidelines amused at the prospect of Chase getting punched by Nico, and ultimately disappointed it didn't happen.

Molly still held Nico as she relaxed, she looked around, "When is Karolina coming back? I want cake. I'm starving."

Eventually, Karolina came back. They ate cake, danced, and laughed through the night until the only people left still standing were Nico and Karolina. The others purposefully giving the two a moment of privacy and retiring to bed before them. They were sitting in front of the fire with soft music playing from the van.

"You looked adorable in your all black moody outfit with your rainbow hat," Karolina said in a teasing tone.

"Well, you looked... um... cute with like mud all over," Nico replied.

Karolina turned to look at her, smile on her face. She gently grabbed her chin and guided Nico to look at her. Karolina placed a soft kiss on Nico's lips. "Thank you," she mumbled onto her lips and then pulled away.

"I know it was nothing like the ones your parents used to throw you, but I just didn't want the day to go by unnoticed. I still wanted you to feel somewhat special like you said you did on those days."

"It was perfect, Nico, really."

Nico took the compliment like she takes most, silently. She was thankful for it, but a bit flustered. She shyly looked into the ambers as they fell into a comfortable silence.

Nico was the one who eventually broke it, "I'm sorry you couldn't be with your family, Kar."

Karolina turned to look at her, "You guys are my family now. Molly, Alex, Gert, even Chase… and especially you, Nico."

Nico was sure that the smile across her face right now probably shone as happy as the birthday ones she loved so much from Karolina. She wanted to tell Karolina she--

And then it clicked: the birthday card. She had still not given it to her.

"I have one more surprise. Wait here a minute." Karolina nodded and Nico got up from her spot to run to her bag and grab the card from inside. She hid it behind her back.

She walked towards Karolina who was watching her with curious eyes - the kind she got before her presents at her birthday parties. Nico felt giddy at the thought she was this excited for her present. She also felt nervous that maybe it wouldn't live up to what was currently racing through Karolina's mind.

Once she reached Karolina and sat beside her, she removed the card from behind her back and extended it to her.

"It's not much..." she excused.

Karolina took the card and opened it. She read it for what seemed like forever - frustrating Nico as she really didn't write that much on it.

Eventually, Karolina looked up - tears back in her eyes.

"You do?" Karolina asked.

Nico nodded softly. Karolina leaned in and kissed her with every ounce of passion she could muster. She dropped the heart-shaped card to her lap, which read: 'Happy birthday. I love you.'

They only broke apart, so Karolina could say, "I love you too."

At that moment, they had not only found a family, they found a home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


	8. Bonus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karolina has always loved mornings, they were quiet moments of peace before life began.

Ever since she can remember, Karolina has always loved mornings. When she was a kid she loved mornings, because it was a start to a new day. She always woke up to blueberry pancakes and her family laughing in the kitchen. Mornings made her feel like her family was picture perfect.

As she grew older, her mother became busier with church and her father with auditions, but Karolina still loved mornings. Mornings became meditation time for Karolina, the quietest hour of the day. She woke up and went on a run before coming home showering and meditating. These hours were the only hours of the day that Karolina felt her thoughts were her own - they weren't dictated by the church or school or her mother.

Even on the run Karolina loved mornings. Mornings were the time before reality hit. They were the moments where Karolina forgot that she was a fugitive of the law and just thought about the warm sun recharging her skin. The peaceful sound of crickets and the feel of morning due in the air seemed to be the only things that calmed her during those days. The views in the remote places made her forget about running away, about her evil parents, and it mostly made her forget that Nico told her they should put their relationship on hold until they could properly be together. Eventually, everything worked out. They were left with scars and trauma she was afraid may never heal from, but they were alive and that mattered most. 

And after all of this, Karolina still loved mornings.

Karolina felt the warmth of the soft morning light filter in through the curtains. It made her smile. She stretched in bed, feeling the comfort. She had never taken a bed for granted again after being on the run. She tucked her face into one of the soft pillows - humming contently.

She felt an arm wrap itself around her naked waist and pull her closer, "Go back to sleep," a voice murmured.

"I'm not tired anymore," Karolina replied after a short giggle.

"It's too early, what's wrong with you?" Nico told her. She turned away from her, and used her pillow to shield her eyes and ears.

Karolina tried to pull the pillow away, but all she heard was a muffled, "No! Sleep."

Karolina gave up her efforts and tried for a different strategy. She leapt from underneath the covers and straddled Nico's waist. She leaned down and started peppering her neck with kisses.

"Mmmm..." was all Nico replied.

Karolina started to pull the covers down and follow the path of Nico's back with her lips. She then worked her way back up and leaned in to whisper in Nico's ear, "Turn around."

Nico complied, turning around to face her. She kissed Nico breathless, then slithered down her body. After much eager dedication, Karolina brought Nico to her high. Nico was panting against the sheets, body slick with sweat, trying her hardest to regain her composure.

"Fuck, that was unfair," was the first breathless thing Nico found strength to say.

"You awake now?" Karolina asked, a smug grin on her face.

"You know damn well I am," she told her with no real bite.

"Finally," Karolina mumbled against the skin of her neck.

"So, what do you want to do? Why'd you wake me up?"

"Nothing, really. Just wanted to hang out."

"Are you serious?" Nico groans in exasperation. She slithers away from Karolina, mad, but she knows Nico enough to know she's only pretending. She drapes her arm around Nico's middle and pulls her closer.

"You're cute when you're angry."

"Am not."

"Are too. You get this little frown line right here." Karolina turned Nico around to look at her and pressed her finger to the wrinkles between her eyes.

Nico blushed, "Karolina, I have a reputation to maintain, please."

"No one believes your reputation, except you," she took a moment before adding, "And maybe Chase."

Nico frowned at her and stuck out her tongue.

"See? Adorable!" Karolina pointed out. Nico feigned outrage and turned around.

"Are you actually mad?" Karolina asked in her best puppy voice.

Nico exhaled deeply, "You know I'm not."

"Good," Karolina said, before pulling her close once more. She pressed a kiss to the back of her neck, and whispered, "Now, go back to sleep."

"Are you serious? I can't sleep now!"

"Nico, why are you like this? Just sleep," Karolina joked. Nico could feel Karolina's grin stretching against her neck.

"You're such a dork," Nico said, trying to hide the smile that inevitably came out around Karolina.

"If you can't sleep, there's always something you can do," Karolina's tone was suggestive.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"You can repay the favor I paid you earlier," Karolina whispered into her ear.

"You can't just do that because you expect retribution, Karolina," Nico playfully scolded.

"You know, I didn't. Come on, please?"

"Hmm, not sure..." Nico insisted.

"Pretty, please?"

"Oh, alright. If you insist." Nico quickly turned around and kissed Karolina, going down her body like Karolina had done before.

And this is why Karolina loved mornings now. These small moments of peace. It was filled with light moments of teasing, pleasure, and happiness. Most of all, it was filled with Nico.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is it!! sorry this took me so long to upload, guys, I had a difficult week and couldn't really get around to writing this.

**Author's Note:**

> by the way, my tumblr for anyone that wants to check it out is @downtothe-wire


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